As is known, hypodermic syringes are legitimately used on a very large scale in hospitals and doctors' offices by professional health care personnel. Remaining, however, is the illegal use of hypodermic syringes by persons administering to themselves or to others illicit drugs. Under these circumstances, it is, of course, important to limit access by those who would use hypodermic syringes illegally.
It is thus desirable that after a hypodermic syringe has been used by a health care personnel that it be destroyed. Destruction is equally important to prevent the spread of a contagious disease which might infect a hypodermic needle, and to prevent the residue of a dangerous medication on a hypodermic needle from being brought into harmful contact with someone who might later handle or use the syringe.
Accordingly, it is the present practice of hospitals and some doctors' offices to employ means to effect, at least to a degree, the destruction of hypodermic syringes. Perhaps the most common type used is a hand-operated device wherein the syringe is severed from the needle portion of the hypodermic syringe. A difficulty with this device is that it is hand-operated and requires quite a bit of hand pressure.
Another device for the destruction of hypodermic syringes grinds them, both plastic and metal. A difficulty with this type device is that it is noisy and it is not generally used on a hospital ward for this reason. This means that hypodermic needles have to be gathered in a ward and taken to the device, which requires that there be additional handling of the syringes, which is not desirable.